I'm having a really bad problem with Hayden fear biting/nipping. He started this a little over a week ago and has nipped three people so far (did not break the skin).

This is the story behind each bite/nip:

#1- We went to my friends jewelry store. My friends husband Richard went to pet Hayden over his head and Hayden was obviously scared, because he tried to hide between me and the counter. When her husband went to reach and tell him "it's ok" Hayden nipped his hand. Five minutes prior to the nip, Richard was giving Hayden treats and everything seemed fine.

#2- We went to our families farm this past Saturday. Hayden was tied out on a 50 foot leash to a tree while we were all inside making dinner (they don't allow dog's in the house). Hayden was having a total fit, so we went outside to give him some company (just grandma and myself) and she went to pet him near his collar and again nipped. It was completely out of no where, not sure why he did it.

#3- One of my male friends came over to my house yesterday and met Hayden for the first time. Hayden right away started barking/howling/wooing very loudly at him and would not stop! My friend was beyond nervous and scared and I think Hayden picked up on it, because my friend was frozen and wouldn't even move or have eye contact with Hayden. When he tried, Hayden would jump back and bark more. I thought eventually he would calm down like he has in the past, but he didn't, it just kept getting worse until finally Hayden nipped my friends leg! I got up and removed him immediately and he cried the entire time.

It's really worrying me, because the county that I live in will euthanize a dog if they bite a human (even if it's a first offense). Hayden is not aggressive, but is very fearful. I've worked really hard with him with several trainers and have put in tons of time socializing him. We're on a waiting list for a new training facility, but they don't have an open spot until June. In the mean time I'm trying to do everything I can do and try to correct his nipping issue. He has a real problem with people touching him over his head and grabbing his collar. Does anyone have any advise?

Sorry for the long post, I just wanted to make sure I included all details.

Ps. A friend of mine with two Huskies told me to carry a muzzle around with me and if Hayden nips I'm to put it on him for a couple minutes. He said eventually he will stop nipping. Does anyone agree with this?

Well the muzzle will stop him from being able to bite, but it won't really solve the problem of why he is biting. I took my lab to puppy kindergarten and one of the training exercises dealt with being able to touch the dogs collar. So what we did is we worked on a come, having the dog sit when he came, then reach down and touch the collar and treat is given. This is something I work with on a daily basis with both Ruby and Balon. Maybe you can go back in training and begin working on being able to touch his collar, then working on being able to pet him over his head. I try to teach people to always pet my dogs on the chest. A lot of dogs have a problem with being petted over or on the head. Definitely sounds fear based, but I would speak with a trainer you certainly don't want him actually biting someone. Good luck!!

I agree with what Balonsmom said.

My dog over reacts when someone come too fast at him from high above him.. He does not bit but lets out a warning bark..

Each of these situations he was either obviously scared, nervous, or anxious. What we don't want to do is set the dog up for failure... Unfortunately as innocent as reaching out to pet him to tell him "it's ok" can actually trigger his next response to the fear by biting. And what we also don't want to do is teach him that nipping is not ok (such as teaching a dog growling isnt ok, what were effectively doing is breaking down their communication chain). We want to teach him that there's nothing to be nervous/fearful/anxious of.

If it were me I would have removed him before your friend could let him in the first instance and start out slower. You have to work at their (the dogs) comfort level. While he was panicking on the line, come out... Wait until he's calmed down. Walk him around on a leash.. And then introduce him.

Hayden is still very young, right? This is actually more normal than you think and it just takes reading the dogs body language and adjusting to teach them the proper way to interact as listening to them when they aren't comfortable.

Thanks June. I'll give it a try and pray it works.

Kristina- I thought for sure he would be ok in all the situations. I exercise Hayden vigorously and he has met the first two people before and didn't show any sign's of being scared or nervous in the past. Prior to them reaching out and touching him the people either gave treats (which of course he was fine with) or waited at least 15 minutes before attempting to touch him. I'll try to do better and make sure I pay better attention to his body language. Thanks for the advise